DOVER — The City Council will vote tonight to support amending the Land Disposition Agreement on the waterfront to extend the developer's rights to the project.

The amendment is to give the developer, Mark Dickinson, 15 months to find investors for the project, which will bring businesses and condominiums to the land along the Cocheco River.

The amendment will also require Dickinson, with or without investors, to build the $2.5 million park and nearby facility listed in the plans, according to City Councilor Michael Crago.

“With the LDA the way it sits now, Dover would have lost this,” Crago said, adding that the facility could be anything from an indoor recreational building to a restaurant.

In December, Dickinson said between planning and paying the city extension payments to maintain his position as the developer, he has invested more than $1 million in the project and was looking to amend the LDA so he no longer had to deliver these payments.

After delivering four extension payments, Dickinson said he will no longer pay the city, but if the council votes to amend the LDA, he will deliver a one-time, non-refundable $25,000 payment, according to City Councilor Michael Crago.

In addition to this $25,000, Crago said Dickinson will also turn over the $100,000 escrow to Dover. If Dickinson lands investors within the next 15 months, he will get the escrow back. If he does not, that $100,000 remains with the city.

Councilor Michael Weeden said last week that once Dickinson has his investors in line, according to the amendment, he will begin to pay the $10,000 extension payments again.

The resolution comes to the agenda after Councilors Crago, Edward Spuler and Karen Weston and Attorney Allan Krans sat down with Dickinson at the end of January to better understand what Dickinson must do differently in order to proceed with the project.

“The definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing over and over again and expect a different result,” Crago said. “We needed to ask Dickinson to reconsider what he thought he needed to program this venture for success.”

Last week, City Councilor Catherine Cheney, City Manager Michael Joyal and City Planner and Community Development Director Chris Parker joined the conversation, according to Crago. They were able to confirm Dickinson has invested more than $1 million.

Crago writes that $180,000 of Dickinson's money has gone to the City of Dover, $560,000 has gone to four architectural and engineering firms and $269,000 has gone to his legal counsel.

“We discussed his assurances that his development project is intended to be high-end rental housing, that will later be sold as condos when market condition improve, and heard him recap his ideas for amending the construction plan and its sequencing,” Crago wrote.

Dickinson also agreed to double the number of condominiums from 100 units to 200 units. According to Crago, Dickinson said lenders will be more interested because of the size.

Crago said Dickinson plans to break ground by August 2014.

If tonight's resolution passes, and Mayor Dean Trefethen, Crago and Weston are all optimistic that it will, the amendment will be referred back to the Cocheco Waterfront Development Advisory Committee for approval.

“We respect the fact that too much money and sweat equity has been invested in trying to make this Dover vision a reality,” Crago said on allowing Dickinson to continue with the project, adding that losing Dickinson would only bring more of a headache to the project, having to find a new investor.

The City Council will meet tonight at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers in City Hall.